Pageantry and queueing collide right on Britain’s sweet spot

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The UK has briefly become a gentler, better-tempered place as people observe Queen’s death

People queuing near Tower Bridge to see the Queen lying in state. ‘If we have a tradition it’s in our ability to talk about queueing and claiming it for ourselves’.People queuing near Tower Bridge to see the Queen lying in state. ‘If we have a tradition it’s in our ability to talk about queueing and claiming it for ourselves’.Last modified on Thu 15 Sep 2022 17.24 BSThen two worlds collide. Pageantry and queueing are two of the country’s favourite rituals. Traditions, almost.

Come Thursday morning – or D+7, as Buckingham Palace calls it – the royal family had taken a back seat. King Charles had retreated to Highgrove for some me time. Time for personal reflection after a week of activities to honour his mother and cement his accession. William and Kate were off to Sandringham to thank staff. Harry was no doubt just wondering why he was given the same treatment as Prince Andrew and made to wear civvies during the procession to Westminster Hall the day before.

From the stairs, people slowly walked down until they were level with the coffin itself. Then they stopped, lost in thought. For both the Queen and what she represented. Not just her qualities of duty and service, but also as the nation’s matriarch. The ultimate mother figure. Someone who had been an unconscious psychological support for so many people. A tabula rasa on whom they could pin their own hopes and fears. And on whom they could project their grief for other losses: family and friends.

 

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